The Lebanese Parliament elected the army commander as the country's president, ending a power vacuum that had lasted for more than two years.
Joseph Aoun's candidacy was supported by many political parties, in addition to the United States, France and Saudi Arabia.
A rival backed by the Hezbollah militia withdrew on Wednesday and backed the commander.
The presidency is essentially a ceremonial role reserved for Christians under a sectarian power-sharing system.
The elections took place six weeks after the Lebanese government agreed to a ceasefire to end the devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah, which has significantly weakened the Iran-backed Shiite group.
The Lebanese army did not participate in the conflict and has a major role under the ceasefire agreement, which requires it to deploy soldiers in southern Lebanon as Israeli forces withdraw and ensure that Hezbollah ends its armed presence there by January 26.
Aoun (60 years old) is a professional soldier and has been in command of the army since 2017.
During that period, he led the institution through profound crises that affected Lebanon.
They include the 13-month conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, a six-year economic recession that is one of the worst crises on record in modern times, and the 2020 Beirut port explosion that killed more than 200 people.
Lebanon has not had a properly functioning government since the last parliamentary elections in May 2022.
Interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati was unable to secure support to form a new government before President Michel Aoun’s term expired in October of that year, leaving his administration with limited powers.
Lawmakers then failed to elect a new president on 12 occasions. The last time was in June 2023, when no candidate obtained enough votes to win the first round before Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal Movement, prevented a second round by withdrawing.
A presidential candidate in Lebanon can usually be elected in the first round if he obtains a two-thirds majority – or 86 votes – in the 128-seat parliament, or a simple majority in the second round. But Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said that Aoun needs a two-thirds majority in any round because he is the commander of the army.
In the first round on Thursday morning, 71 deputies voted for Aoun, 15 fewer than he wanted. Another 37 MPs – many of them said to be from Hezbollah and the Amal Movement – cast blank ballots, while 20 ballots were declared invalid.
Berri, a leader of the Amal Movement, then suspended the session until the afternoon, angering lawmakers who had wanted the second round to take place immediately.
Ultimately, Aoun was elected president after receiving 99 votes in the second round, easily achieving the required two-thirds majority. Nine representatives cast blank ballots, in addition to 18 invalid ballots.
Immediately after the Speaker of Parliament announced the result, television channels showed scenes of celebration in various parts of the country.
Aoun was later seen arriving at the Parliament building wearing a suit and then inspecting the guards before entering the hall to take the oath.
